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EFFector - Volume 15, Issue 18 - EFF Opposes "Broadcast Flag"

EFFector - Volume 15, Issue 18 - EFF Opposes "Broadcast Flag"

EFFector Vol. 15, No. 18 June 13, 2002 ren@eff.org
A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation ISSN 1062-9424
In the 218th Issue of EFFector:
* Electronic Frontier Foundation Opposes "Broadcast Flag," Submits
Letter To Congress
* Biometrics, Surveillance, National ID Threats To Privacy
* EFF Still Needs Your Tax-Deductible Office Chairs
* Administrivia
For more information on EFF activities & alerts:
http://www.eff.org/
To join EFF or make an additional donation:
http://www.eff.org/support/
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Electronic Frontier Foundation Opposes "Broadcast Flag"
Proposed Technology Mandate Will Harm Consumers
Electronic Frontier Foundation Media Release For Immediate Release:
Thursday, June 13, 2002
San Francisco - The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) today sent a
letter to Representative Billy Tauzin (R-LA) exposing how the studios'
"broadcast flag" proposal for digital television (DTV) will harm
consumers and slow DTV roll-out.
Representative Tauzin, a key Congressional player in the DTV debate,
today held a meeting of his DTV Roundtable, an invitation-only event
comprised of industry representatives. Although Representative Tauzin
neglected to invite EFF or other groups representing consumer
interests,
EFF hopes that today's EFF letter will highlight consumer concerns and
assist Rep. Tauzin in his effort to protect the public interest in the
DTV transition.
In its letter, EFF points out the ways in which the Broadcast
Protection
Discussion Group (BPDG), the group developing the technical standards
for the "broadcast flag," has excluded consumer groups. The BPDG made
its recommendations as part of a Final Report published on June 4,
2002.
The exclusion of consumer-interest voices from the process has
resulted
in recommendations that will undermine fair use and endorse
proprietary
standards that will harm competition and innovation. If adopted, these
recommendations will hinder, rather than help, DTV roll-out by making
DTV a complex and expensive alternative to traditional analog
television.
"Consumer voices have been excluded from these inter-industry
negotiations about the 'broadcast flag' and the future of DTV," said
EFF
Senior Intellectual Property Attorney Fred von Lohmann. "We hope Rep.
Tauzin will see the BPDG report for what it is -- a self-interested
document generated by a small number of large corporations without
soliciting the concerns of consumers."
The BPDG is an inter-industry group that includes large companies from
the consumer electronics, information technology, and entertainment
industries. The group has been tasked with developing a
copy-prevention
standard based on a "broadcast flag" to be added to all DTV
broadcasts.
The EFF has participated in the BPDG process and has been critical of
its procedures and recommendations.
Links:
For this release:
http://www.eff.org/IP/Video/HDTV/20020611_eff_bpdg_pr.html
EFF letter and attachment:
http://www.eff.org/IP/Video/HDTV/20020611_eff_tauzin.html
For more about the BPDG and "broadcast flag":
http://bpdg.blogs.eff.org/
Contacts:
Fred von Lohmann
Senior Intellectual Property Attorney
Electronic Frontier Foundation
fred@eff.org
+1 415 436-9333 x123 (office), +1 415 215-6087 (cell)
Cory Doctorow
Outreach Coordinator
Electronic Frontier Foundation
cory@eff.org
+1 415 436-9333 x106 (office), +1 415 726-5209 (cell)
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Biometrics, Surveillance, National ID Threats to Privacy
Electronic Frontier Foundation Releases Reports
Electronic Frontier Foundation Media Release For Immediate Release:
Thursday, June 13, 2002
San Francisco - The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) today
released
a series of reports on the shortcomings of large-scale civilian
biometrics systems, the invasive nature of public surveillance, and
the
inherent dangers of a national identification system.
After September 11, the U.S. government enacted sweeping legislation
that diminished privacy rights in the name of domestic security. In
response to bills like the USA Patriot Act, the Enhanced Border
Security
and Visa Entry Reform Act, and the proposed Driver's License
Modernization Act, EFF is providing the public with factual data on
these laws and the technologies they employ.
"High-tech systems are not a quick fix for terrorism," said EFF Senior
Staff Attorney Lee Tien. "For the most part, these technologies are
dangerously unreliable, and even the best of them are highly
invasive."
"Governments justify overreaching surveillance on vulnerable targets
such as aliens and dissenters, then inevitably try to extend its use
to
the rest of society," Tien added.
The EFF "Biometrics," "National ID System," and "Surveillance Monitor"
documents describe in detail the technologies being deployed by the
U.S.
and other governments in an effort to tighten security. The reports
provide an overview of the technologies and a comprehensive analysis
of
the privacy concerns they raise.
EFF also recently released an updated version of "EFF's Top 12 Ways to
Protect Your Online Privacy," a detailed account of the best methods
of
maintaining one's privacy on the Internet, including use of encryption
and cookie management software.
Links:
For this release:
http://www.eff.org/Privacy/20020613_eff_privacy_pr.html
EFF's Privacy Now Campaign:
http://www.eff.org/privnow/
EFF's Top 12 Ways to Protect Your Online Privacy:
http://www.eff.org/Privacy/eff_privacy_top_12.html
Biometrics page:
http://www.eff.org/Privacy/Surveillance/biometrics.html
National ID page:
http://www.eff.org/Privacy/Surveillance/nationalidsystem.html
Surveillance Monitor page:
http://www.eff.org/Privacy/Surveillance/surveillancemonitor.html
Contacts:
Lee Tien
Senior Staff Attorney
Electronic Frontier Foundation
tien@eff.org
+1 415 436-9333 x102 (office), +1 510 290-7131 (cell)
About EFF:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading civil liberties
organization working to protect rights in the digital world. Founded
in
1990, EFF actively encourages and challenges industry and government
to
support free expression, privacy, and openness in the information
society. EFF is a member-supported organization and maintains one of
the
most linked-to Web sites in the world:
http://www.eff.org
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EFF Needs Office Chairs
EFF is still looking for some good office chairs. Fighting the good
fight is hard on the vertebrae, so ergonomically-minded donations are
especially welcome. We can also provide tax-deductible receipts! We
are
in San Francisco, so donors should probably be in the Bay Area.
Contact
Ren Bucholz if you have questions or donations. Thanks in advance!
Contact:
Ren Bucholz
Activist
Electronic Frontier Foundation
ren@eff.org
+1 415 436-9333 x121 (office)
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Administrivia
EFFector is published by:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation
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http://www.eff.org/
Editor:
Ren Bucholz
Activist
ren@eff.org
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